ACLI President & CEO Dirk Kempthorne issued the following statement today in response to comments made by Federal Reserve Board Governor Daniel Tarullo:
Washington, D.C. (May 20, 2016) – “We are encouraged by the comments made today by Federal Reserve Board Governor Daniel Tarullo about plans under way at the Federal Reserve for regulation of insurance industry capital standards.
“We welcome Governor Tarullo’s comment that capital standards under Europe’s Solvency II, and standards under development by the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), would not be appropriate for the United States. It suggests he is keenly aware that the standards are not rooted in our nation’s regulatory system and do not build on America’s strong, state-based system of regulation. We also appreciate his recognition that the business and associated risks of insurers are very different from those of other financial firms, and so rules governing insurance companies’ capital must be specially tailored for the industry.
“We have questions about an approach that would put in place two distinctly different capital regimes for insurance entities overseen by the Board, and so we will be looking extremely closely at the details of the proposals once they are released.”
The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association with approximately 300 member companies operating in the United States and abroad. ACLI advocates in federal, state, and international forums for public policy that supports the industry marketplace and the 75 million American families that rely on life insurers’ products for financial and retirement security. ACLI members offer life insurance, annuities, retirement plans, long-term care and disability income insurance, and reinsurance, representing more than 90 percent of industry assets and premiums. Learn more at www.acli.com.